Eternal Conflagration
by Ellie-Rigby64
Summary: After Ichigo lost his powers, Karin's own gifts surged drastically. Her rising power has caused her to see REALLY freaky things while her life is in constant peril. As she investigates into her family's origins and how her powers came to be, will she finally accept her own spiritual side and seek the help of others to protect the ones she love? Canon-diverg. CH 424-620. hitsukarin.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Helloo there! Thanks for taking an interest in this attempt of mine! I'm finally publishing something after being a long time reader. I just had to add something for the Karin/hitsukarin fandom, and this has been on the back burner of brain for a while now. Honestly, I've been planning this as far back as CH. 428 of the Manga. **[Minor Ch 428 spoilers] **When I read Karin saying something like: "It's my turn to protect Ichi-nii." I was so ecstatic! I was like "Finally we get a badass Karin! Kubo made it happen!" But that arc came and went, and Badass Karin never came L . I was so delulu for Kickass Karin that when I took in the last page of Ch 500 my mind automatically when, "Oh, it must be Karin." So I came up with this canon divergent story to reconcile my Karin-focus need. As such, it will be a Karin-centric fic with a Hitsukarin undertone in the later chapters.

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Bleach characters or Bleach universe concepts discussed in this chapter. All rights belong to Tite Kubo.

**[Warning: Ch 424 Spoilers, some graphic violence, and Karin has a sailor's mouth (she throws the f-word around like confetti)]**

Mid-April

_His sneakers pounded against the pavement as he ran as fast as he's ever ran before. It was getting harder and harder to breathe, but he couldn't risk stopping for even a moment. He risked a glance over his shoulder and what he saw terrified him all over again. A monstrous creature was rapidly slithering after him. It was huge—at least the length of three residential homes—and its multi-segmented made a loud clacking sound as it tried to reach him. The resounding crunch that would echo in the atmosphere every time the fifty-jointed legs slammed against the cement. If it was sharp enough to penetrate rock, he definitely did not want to know what it could do to his soft flesh._

_But the rattle of chains brought him back to reality. He was no longer flesh, he was. . . honestly, he wasn't quite sure what he was. He just remembers heading home on his motorcycle after his band had a gig. He was thinking about the pretty brunette he had been seeing around the coffee shop and how he had finally gotten the courage to ask her out. He still hadn't removed the smile from his face when he rode through an intersection. The smile was still on his face when that white truck came speeding out of nowhere completely ignoring the red light it had. One demonstration of Newton's First Law of Motion later, and he was waking up struggling to breathe with a long dangling chain attached to his chest. He was immersed into a living hell being chased by this monster while no one around could hear his screams for help._

_Without knowing it, he came to a crowded area with more of those people that couldn't see him. The people stopped in mild confusion as cracks appeared and tremors pulsed through the ground. Chaos ensued when people were tossed and gored by the monster tunneling through them. The young man struggled to get through the whirlpool of bystanders (he was still unused to going _through _people). "GET OUT OF THE WAY!", he shouted futilely. He knew the creature had the advantage and was most likely gaining on him._

_The man could see an opening up ahead! He just had to get through these two rows of people, and he would be able to pick up the pace. Then all of a sudden, an excruciating pain shot through his abdomen and halted his movements. He looked down to see a pointed appendage protruding out his gut, dripping with his blood. He. . .he could have sworn there was more distance between he and it. He craned his neck to look at his murderer, and his eyes widened in dismayed shock. Along with the fifty feet made for crawling, the monster had eight nine-foot high sharp legs that it concealed within its first segment._

_The spider-like legs held the man in place as the rest of its long body wound its way around him constricting him. "Sorry if I made you think you had a chance to get away," the creature's sinister voice mocked, "Food isn't enjoyable if it doesn't struggle!" The many legs wrapped around the man's body bit into all areas of his skin and oozed a green toxin into the puncture wounds. The young man screamed in pain as the poison burned through his system. "Mmm.. This stuff will make it impossible for you to move or scream. But don't worry, you'll still be able to feel _everything_," the monster proclaimed in maniacal glee. He began slowly consuming the soul as the paralysis finally took effect; the only sign the boy was aware of what was being done to him were the horror-filled eyes that were locked onto his skull mask. He played with his food for a bit, but halfway through digesting the arm, it was no longer fun. "Ugh. Bored now."_

_The monster uncoiled its body from around the young man. His eight spindly legs punctured the human's inert body and raised him up. Tears fell from the musician's eyes as he thought about the unfairness of it all. He was just twenty-two years old; he was not ready for it to end-especially so violently. His band was finally starting to gain a loyal following and some labels were starting to show an interest. He will never get a chance to resolve the strained relationship with his father (his old man was disappointed he wouldn't follow in his footsteps and become a lawyer). And he will never get that date with the girl that filled his thoughts; a shame, he really thought they could have hit it off. So unfair, this living hell. The legs pulled, bisecting the man and causing a shower of blood and viscera to fall on the pavement._

"Karin-chan!" She jolted at the sound of her name. She was so lost in the thoughts of someone else that she completely zoned out on the _here _and now. Right, she was in the middle of the Entrance Ceremony for her new secondary school. She tweaked her head to her right to gaze at her twin while refusing to remove her palms from her eye-sockets; it helped to relieve some of the pain in her skull, but also helped to conceal the fact that her eyes were watering. The headaches have become were her prerequisite "gift with purchase" for her keen spiritual-sense. At least they weren't as bad as they used to be. A year ago, they felt like someone was taking a jackhammer to her temple and would have her out of commission for the rest of the day. Now, it was just a dull ache that throbbed until _it_ was taken care of.

Sensing her twin was not in the mood for one of her bossy comments, she gently informed, "Karin-chan, it's our rows turn to leave now. . ." Karin's eyes widened at that information; she didn't realize she missed the rest of the ceremony being stuck in that man's thoughts. Yuzu's eyes filled with concern, "Are you okay? Is it one of your migraines? "

The black-haired twin stood up and followed the rest of the row out. "Yeah, it's just really bright and loud in here," she lied to her sister. Karin has still yet to inform her sister of the reason why she gets all these migraines.

"Well, we're almost outside. Maybe some fresh air will help," she suggested while rubbing comforting circles on Karin's back.

"Thanks, Yuzu." Her migraine was already starting to dissipate, but it wasn't because the prospect of getting out of the building was soothing. A few moments ago, she had felt the reiatsu of one of Ichigo's friends-the thin man with the glasses-appear alongside the hollow that tormented the musician, and soon the hollow's reiatsu disappeared altogether. And while she was comforted in the fact that the hollow was gone for good to no longer torment another soul, an aching sadness filled her for all the souls, like the musician, the hollow consumed. For, she knew they were gone for good too. She wasn't quite sure how she knew this, but she felt it down to her bones that all those lost souls were gone and were never coming back.

Another puzzling matter was her ability to see into the thoughts or memories of a soul. She wasn't quite sure how or why, but it was becoming increasingly frequent. The first time she experienced it was the boy trapped in the cockatiel. She assumed she was able to see into his memories because they were around the same age. But this past year she's been seeing the thoughts of all different types of human souls-no matter their age, race, or gender. She didn't know what the connection was between all of them (or if there even was one).

All she knew was that a couple of souls every few months or so would reach out and connect with her on a much deeper level. Everything they felt, she felt. She felt the suffocating confusion and loneliness they woke up to. Depending on the person, she felt their rage, sadness, happiness, and disappointment at the past memories they left behind. Most of all, their deaths were the hardest; in the beginning when they would get a grievous injury, Karin would have to check herself over to make sure the same was not done to her. She wasn't certain why she felt it all, down to the little details, but she did. It was always when they were being chased by Hollows moments before their death. She had a theory about the whole thing. It was like a message was sent off, amplified by their desperation, to someone who would listen-as a plea for help. To let someone know they _still_ existed in the world. Ironic that they decided to send it to the one girl that tried to deny their existence despite all the evidence contrary to her belief.

At first, she tried to save them herself since Ichi-nii lost his powers and the Afro-haired shinigami was incompetent at his job. But often times she would show up too late or would just put her own life in danger (apparently a reiatsu-filled soccer ball was just a nuisance to some of these hollows). After a while, she realized it was futile—at least until she becomes stronger. These lost souls were one of the reasons why she wanted to become stronger.

When they finally made it outside, the two girls decided to stand under the maple tree and wait for their dad to come out of the auditorium. Yuzu was chatting her ear off about something or other (excitement in starting middle school, jealousy at the _huge _growth spurt Ayame-chan's chest took over the break, and lusty admiration at how good Haruka-kun looks now). Finally, the families' of the students were making their way out of the building, and none other than their beardo dad was aggressively barging through the sea of people crying and shouting their names. As he came barreling towards them at full tilt, he tore open his dress shirt and shouted, "KAAAARIN, YUUUUZU! DADDY'S SOOO PROUD! JUMP INTO DADDY'S CHE-bffgh". He was unceremoniously slammed to the ground by a foot in the face. "Karin," he rasped out like he was on his deathbed, "Daddy can see your panties."

Suffice it to say, that was rewarded a kick to the groin. Karin ground her foot into his belly with each syllable: "SHUT IT, GOAT CHIN! AND STOP SAYING PERVERTED THINGS TO YOUR DAUGHTERS!"

The ever dutiful daughter, Yuzu helped her dad to sit up. "Karin-chan, don't be so mean to Otou-san," the doe-eyed twin scolded. Meanwhile their eccentric dad unfolded a flowery poster of the girl's mother and proceeded to sob into it about how cruel their daughter could be.

The raven-haired girl rolled her eyes—she couldn't believe he kept a copy in his suit pocket—and began to walk away from her family. "Whatever. I don't want to be late for homeroom. You should head off too, Yuzu." And with that, she apathetically waved goodbye.

* * *

Karin's first day of school passed by with relative ease. There were a lot of familiar faces in her homeroom, but most importantly Ryohei and Kei were in her class. She had the science teacher for homeroom which was cool because he actually seemed to love what he does (a rare find in a school teacher), and science was by far her favorite subject. The rest of the teachers that came in and out of the room were hit and miss (she wonders if the supply room was missing a broom, because she's pretty sure it's up her history teacher's butt).

After their cleaning duties, Karin changed into her athletic clothes and told Yuzu to head home without her because she wanted to head to the park to practice. Soccer tryouts were coming up, and she wanted to be one of the few seventh graders to play for the varsity team. She was currently at the Karakura Community Park; it had two soccer fields and plenty of open grassy areas (plus it was only a few blocks away from her school). She had already stretched her limbs and ran a couple laps around the park to warm up, and now she was practicing on her footwork. Karin was pretty confident in her goal scoring abilities because her aim was nearly dead-on when it came to her intended target, but she wasn't so assured in her ability to maintain ball possession.

The athletic middle-schooler spent hours running through potential plays in her head in order to work on her feints. She imagined an opponent coming at her from the left; she rolled the ball back with her one foot, spun around, and took control with the other to effectively get around her opponent. After several fake-outs and pop-ups later, she was really coming to regret her decision to not invite the guys to train with her. Working on switching feet with complicated twists thrown in was all well and good, but she wouldn't know how well it would work unless facing an actual person. She had seen how big those ninth-grade girls could be compared to her, and Karin knew they could easily overpower her when it came to brute force. She had to make sure she was quick with her feet and avoid potential steal in order to have any chance of making Varsity. But if she was honest about her friends-and she always was-they would have been lousy help anyways. Only a couple of them went through growth spurts during the past year (Heita was still just as short as ever and Kazuya was still rail thin). While Kei was the biggest out of all of them (in height and weight), he was lousy at soccer and wouldn't offer much of a challenge. Plus her friends were still very much terrified of her and would be more likely to flee from her approach rather than attack. The only one that had the nerve to get in her face first was Ryohei (Kei was always on Karin's side no matter her mood swings, while Heita and Kazuya were only brave enough to parrot whatever Ryohei said; they were firm believers in 'strength in numbers'), but Karin had to put that pervert in his place with a punch to the face when he would try to make a pass at her—it happened so frequently that a bruised cheek would coincide with his realization that his best friend had a "nice rack". And although he was a good soccer player, he was more interested in the female body and has been using his free time flirting up classmates (Karin's sure he's hoping to score a date with Ayame and her big breasts). So she'll practice alone until she can make more soccer friends.

The sun was hanging low in the sky when Karin finally called it quits. The young girl flung herself onto the ground panting from exhaustion. Karin languidly closed her eyes and relished the moment. The April breeze caressed her body and cooled the sweat that clung to it.

The musty aroma filled her nostrils as her fingers clutched at the tufts of grass until her fingernails raked through the dirt. Shadows played across her eyelids as her mind succumbed to the relaxed atmosphere. In this moment she had nothing to worry about. She could forget about joining clubs, getting good grades, or even seeing ghosts. God, her increasing powers were really terrifying her at times whether it was getting less and less privacy from the ones that always seem to follow her (showering has become a hassle with pervert ghosts) or the 'visions' of a soul's coming death. She was so adamant that if she didn't believe in spiritual phenomena then it didn't exist whether she saw it or not, but now she could no longer afford to be in denial. So she cherished this moment, for she was just a girl relaxing in the grass with nothing to worry about.

Her repose was interrupted when a bright light erased all the shadows and forced her to squeeze her already closed eyes even tighter at the sudden change. She quickly sat up and brought her hand up to shield her sensitive eyes as she opened them to investigate. "What the hell?!" the adolescent exclaimed in shock when she took in her surroundings. As far as she could tell, she was no longer in the community park. There were no playgrounds, no sport fields or courts, and no sounds of others. She was all alone on a plush plain of the most vibrant grass she's ever seen. Stranger still was the sky. There was no sun in the sky, but it still managed to be the brightest, whitest she's ever seen it. Karin squinted her eyes as she caught a flicker of movement in the distant expanse. It was too far away to be sure, but she could have sworn she saw an orange glimmer. '_What is that?', _she wondered. "Hello," she questioned and quickly felt stupid for calling out to it. If all the horror movies she's seen had taught her anything, it was to _never _call out to the ominous presence in the distance.

An eardrum-shattering roar was given as a response. Her blood ran cold as she instantly recognized the inhuman cry; she had heard it many times in the memories of others and around Karakura Town that she knew it to mean coming death. The terrified girl squeezed her eyes shut and repeatedly told herself: 'It's just a dream. I'll wake up. I'll wake up!" "WAKE UP!"

Karin snapped her eyes open to find herself once again in the community park. But the terror remained at the realization that the noise wasn't from her dream. It was coming from the behemoth hollow that was making its way towards her. It was at least fifteen yards away, so she quickly rummaged through her sports bag for that knock-off Pac-Man Urahara gave her and tucked it into her short's pocket in case she would need it. She zipped up her bag and flung the strap over her head. She tucked her worn soccer ball under her arm and took off as fast as she could.

Her cleats scraped against the cement of the basketball court she ran across. The short chain-link fence was only five yards away, and she would then be out of the park. But where would she run to? She'd have to take wide, empty streets to hopefully prevent others from getting hurt during her attempts to flee. The resounding crash of the hoop's metal pole notified Karin that the monster was gaining on her. She threw her ball over the fence with her after it and tumbled onto the sidewalk scraping her hands and knees in the process. She picked up her ball and hooked a right. As a kid who liked wandering the streets, she knew which ones would be empty at this time of a day. Plus if she ended up having to fight it, it would be much easier at the abandoned Matsukura Hospital just north of the park.

In case it did turn into a battle, Karin ran through the Hado spell she had been memorizing. "'_Ye lord! Mask of blood and flesh, flutter of wings'.. No '_all creation, flutter of wings'_, 'Inferno and pandemonium'... 'Pandemonium..' Ugh what's the last part? 'Unleash the wrath of your claws'? No! That's a different one!" _Karin was so focused on remembering the spell in it entirety while sprinting that she barely registered the tall man that was standing in her path. When she realized he wasn't getting out of the way, she screamed: "RUN AWAY!"

Instead of heeding her advice, he walked past the short girl as if she wasn't there and swaggered straight into the path of the incoming hollow with a knowing look on his face. '_What the hell is that idiot doing?!' _With his slicked back hair and a cocky smirk worn on his chiseled face, Karin could already tell this guy was probably a huge douche. But, douche or not, the guy didn't deserved to be an appetizer on the Hollow's menu.

The girl resolutely threw her bag onto the ground and dribbled the ball towards the monster. With each tap of the foot, the ball glowed brighter and brighter with the reiatsu Karin was funneling into it. "Oi, didn't you hear me?! Get the FUCK out of the way and LEAVE!" She swung her leg back and put as much power into the kick as she could. The glowing ball zoomed directly towards the monster's bulbous head and made a direct impact with the creature's mask with a resounding crack. A horrific shriek of pain filled the air as the monster writhed violently in pain. Only a fissure along his skull-like mask was proof of Karin's kick, and the monster was back up-more pissed off than ever. "WATCH OUT!", Karin cried out as the monster was about to take a swing at the man.

The man's only response was a slight head turn to connect eyes with the young girl and smirk as the punch rocketed towards him. Karin watched in horror: '_Was this guy insane?'_. But just as the monster's fist was about to connect with the man's body, the cocky guy vanished completely. '_What the fuck?!' _The shifting of the hollow's head seemed to echo her confusion. But like an adaptive predator, it picked a new prey. '_Oh shit..._' From the position Karin was in now with creature towering above, she could easily die at any moment. She could never run away now.

She reached into her pocket and pulled out the Pac-man Poke-ball. She pressed eyes of the ball in and quickly flung it at the monster. The Pac-man's zig-zagged mouth opened up to emit an electrical current that quickly surrounded the hollow and held it in place. Karin backed away to give herself some distance while she prepared. She placed one palm over the other and had them out towards the creature as she gathered up all the energy she knew she had. "Ye lord! Mask of blood and flesh, . . ." The energy radiated throughout her body as it all made its way up her arms. ". . .all creation, flutter of wings, . . ." Her hands tingled as the reiatsu began to gather in the center of her palms. ". . .ye who bears the name of Man!" The tingling turned into a searing pain as her energy took on a red glow. The monster was no longer subdued by electricity, and it was now charging at her. "Inferno and pandemonium,. . ." Karin couldn't believe she had forgotten the last verse earlier (especially with all the mnemonic aids she created to help her remember). But now, she recalled it with perfect clarity as if someone else was speaking the words from her mouth. "...the sea barrier surges, march onto the south!" The creature was just five feet away from her. She screamed in determination as the big, red ball of energy pulsed faster and faster, "Hadō #31: Shakkahō!"

The girl's small body was propelled backwards as the fire ball shot out of her hand like a cannon. It smashed into the hollows mask with such force that it blasted a large hole through its skull, and the rest of the hollow disintegrated into ashy spirit particles soon after. "Damn. That hurt." Her arm was scuffed up from the fall, and her left palm had a huge red burn from where the Hado had shot out of. It was easy to lie to her family about the former, because she was constantly coming home with scrapes and bruises from her athletic lifestyle. But the latter was going to be a harder sell since it was not a common injury she would get, and it was far too circular for 'typical' burns. But she'll come up with something-given whom her dad is Karin definitely developed the ability to tell a tall tale; she was beginning to think lying was a Kurosaki trait.

The middle-schooler rose on shaky legs, and she staggered to pick up her bag and ball. Her thoughts were in a flurry over everything that transpired today. She will definitely be making a trip to Uruhara's. She had needed to regardless of today, because she was running low on her supplies (and she used the last of the weird, but helpful electro-balls today). But now there were so many other things to address. She was already concerned about her weird 'visions', but the dream she had earlier took it to a-whole-nother level. '_Was it just a dream? It felt so real...'_ . But even that didn't take center stage to what she considered the bigger issue at hand. Black, slicked-back hair and a cocky smirk on thick lips came to mind. '_Who was he? _What_ is he?'._ He had moved quicker than she knew was physically possible. The only beings she had seen break these feats before were the shinigami she had witnessed fighting in her town nearly two years ago. Before she had passed out from the pressure put on her, she had watched from her window as they appeared in one place, disappeared, and appeared somewhere else quicker than she could keep track of. And their enemies in battle were just as fast. So was this guy a friend or foe?

Yep, she'll definitely have to take a trip to Urahara's. But it'll have to wait; the sun was setting, and Yuzu always gets pissed when she's late. Her twin says it's because Karin has the lack of decency to show up on time to the dinner she has slaved over since getting home from school. But the raven-haired twin knows better, and knows that the pout on her sister's face is poorly covered up concern for Karin's safety while being out after dark. To ease Yuzu's worry, Karin begins to jog home—despite how drained she is—in order to make it home in time. Yep, Urahara's can wait until tomorrow.

* * *

A/N: So what did you guys think of it? Interesting? Boring? OOC? Let me know whatcha think, and feel free to be as brutally honest as possible. Constructive criticism is really helpful J.

If you're interested, there were certain songs that came to mind while writing this fic that I created a playlist of themes:

-Toushiro's Theme: 'Silver and Cold' by A.F.I

-Hitsukarin Theme: 'Love Like Winter' by A.F.I.

-Hyourinmaru's Theme: 'A Winter's Tale' by A.F.I

(The rest will remain ambiguous until later chapters)

\- 'Summer Shudder' by A.F.I

\- 'Slow Burn' by Atreyu

\- 'Firebreather' by Thrice

\- 'Backdraft' by Thrice

\- 'This Fire' by Killswitch Engage

\- 'My Curse' by Killswitch Engage

\- 'End of Heartache' by Killswitch Engage

\- 'Demolition Lovers' by My Chemical Romance

Sorry for all the mid-2000's alternative mix. I just happened to find my old high school iPod, and all these lyrics seemed to fit well with the storyline. I just had to include four of A Fire Inside's songs since they make so many allusions to winter and life after death. Kubo's choice to use A.F.I's 'Girl's not Grey' as Toushirou's theme seemed to be even more depressing to me because to me it seemed like he was accepting and embracing his inevitable death within a hopeless situation… I don't know, I could be wrong . . . I just hope he just picked it because it was pretty popular at the time and not because he was foreshadowing Hitsugaya's future in the series…

Anyways, next chapter will occur during CH 427-428. Stay tuned!


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Yay, I see some people are interested! I want to say thanks to **Nightraze**, **Starscape91**, and **MikeRyder16** for the kind reviews. If anyone has any questions or criticisms about anything feel free to review or send me a PM. This one is a long one. It may seem like some of the stuff I mention is just filler, but believe me it has an important purpose to the plot.

Disclaimer: I do not own any characters or concepts from the Bleach universe. All of that belongs to Tite Kubo and his affiliates.

**[Warning: Only Spoilers up to Ch 428; Karin kept her mouth clean this time ;P ]**

* * *

Karin was getting restless, and she wanted this school day to end already. She was beyond exhausted from massive energy expenditure she was forced to do, and her mind failed to shut out the recollections of yesterday. Anytime she would close her eyes, a cacophony of memories would detonate in her head: tear-soaked cheeks, ruby red guts splattering on the pavement, a smug grin, a resplendent sky, a hollow's cry. . . It was like she was stuck in some weird time-loop reliving the same images over and over again.

Suffice it to say, she was not up to using her brain for anything educational today. Her classmates had to repeat themselves more than once when Karin was too busy staring listlessly into the distance to respond. She's actually surprised she didn't get a detention for how frequently she was reprimanded for drifting off. She was glad she didn't, because she just wanted to hurry up and get to Urahara's Shouten.

She was currently sitting through her last class of the day waiting for the bell to ring. Her language arts teacher, Fujioka-sensei, was going on about maintaining the focus in an essay or something of that nature—she only knew that was what was being talked about because he had written 'focus' across the chalkboard and proceeded to underline it multiple times before finally circling it. . .and then underlined it some more. Rather than taking notes like most of her peers, Karin's hand was moving in short, hurried strokes across a page in the back of her notebook. A girl sitting atop a grassy ocean was taking form. Granted it wasn't the most original drawing, and she wasn't that great of an artist—she took far too long to finish, and her attempts always looked like a distorted imitation of the real thing—but she felt the need to try to capture her dream before she forgot it.

She chewed her lip as she pondered how to recreate the sky. There was something really special about it that she wasn't sure she had the talent to capture it. She recalled there being no clouds, yet there seemed to be a veil of sorts that shimmered like tiny diamonds and acted as a curtain to obscure whatever was hiding in the celestial sphere. Her pencil barely grazed the paper as she started to draw the orange...thing she saw. She blended it out with her pinky. How could she justly capture its movement? From what she glanced of it it was constantly rippling, constantly changing form. Its persimmon-colored tendrils flicked out of the veil teasingly showing just as much opulence as the sky around it. The presence was terrifying in the unknown, but hauntingly beautiful.

Just as Karin was erasing streaks to form the rays of light that filtered through, a hand came down and snatched up her notebook. "What's this? Oh looks like we got a regular Da Vinci in the classroom," the teacher mocked while the students did a poor job to muffle their snickers. "You know, Kurosaki-san, if you spent half the time I witnessed you creating this stunning masterpiece to actually take notes, I wouldn't feel the need to waste the class' time to lecture you on the importance of paying attention." He fixed his beady eyes onto her contrite face as she mumbled an apology. Fujioka-sensei let out an exasperated sigh, "You're lucky I have better things to do than spend my time babysitting you after school. But the next time I catch you not on task, I'll be forced to discipline you."

The reprimanded girl kept her eyes trained on her desk as she rubbed awkwardly at the back of her neck. "I apologize. I promise it won't happen again."

"Good. I'll hold you to that then." He looked at his watch and began talking to the class once again. "Okay. For the last fifteen minutes of class, I want to discuss your first major essay."

"As you know, Golden Week is coming up in two weeks. I know you guys will want to spend that vacation time locked up in your rooms playing the latest PS2 game. That is why you'll have a four-page final draft due when you all comeback." The entire class erupted into groans and protests, but he continued anyway. He walked up to the chalkboard and began to erase all his previous notes. "In spirit of Golden Week, your paper will revolve around one of the three holidays."

He picked up the yellow chalk and wrote '_Midori no hi' _on the board. "Greenery Day: a time to commune with nature. If you decide to focus on this day, you can possibly talk about the environment, pick a species to discuss, or pick a park or garden to write about. Whatever, it's completely up to you."

He wrote the next holiday, '_Kenp__ō_ _Kinebi'_. "Constitution Memorial Day: to celebrate the day our new constitution was enacted in 1947, this day is used to reflect on our government. This one will probably be more difficult for some of you, but you could possibly write about what it means to be a citizen of Japan, an opinion piece on the constitution—like the controversial 'Article 9', or what democracy means to you."

He wrote the last holiday down: '_Kodomo no Hi'. "_Children's Day: a day to celebrate the happiness and individuality of all children while expressing an appreciation to the mothers that bore you." Karin couldn't help but grind her teeth at the mention of this. As other kids were flying carp kites with their parents, this holiday—celebrated the day before her birthday, no less—served as a painful reminder that her own mother was dead. "Since you all are getting ready to leave your childhood behind, you could use this as an opportunity to reflect on how you grew up or how you were raised. You can even compare your life then and where you imagined yourself in the future to where you are now and how your perceptions of the future may have changed. Or you could write about your own mother, get to know what her childhood was like, or discuss how she raised you. The possibilities are limitless."

The shrill ringing of the bell cut through the room. "I'm expecting a topic and a prompt from you in two days," he shouted over the rustling of binders closing and leather bags flapping open, "Your rough draft is due for peer review two days before vacation, so you don't have a lot of time to waste. All right, class is dismissed."

Karin was among the first to launch out of their seat. She rushed determinedly to her best friends' desks before they had time to leave for cleaning duty. "Hey hold up, Kei, Ryohei. I got something I need to ask you."

Unlike Ryohei—whose full attention was on Kimiko bending over to pick up the pencil she dropped—, Kei gave her his full attention and stopped packing up. "What is it, Karin?"

"Can you guys cover my cleaning duties for me today? I'm supposed to sweep the first floor hallways, but this," she gestured to her bandaged left hand, "makes holdin' the broom kinda difficult." She noticed Kei wince as he seemed to recall what her hand looked like underneath the bandage. '_Good. Maybe he'll be more sympathetic to my request.'_ She had told the guys the same lie she had told her family.

When she had gotten home last night, Yuzu immediately forgot all about dinner when she had gotten a good look at her sister's appearance. "Karin-chan! What happened?!", her sister questioned as she led her into the clinic where their father was filling out paperwork despite her protests. "Otou-chan! Karin's hurt!"

Both Yuzu and Karin were too busy fretting and being fretted over, respectively, to notice the dark look of concern that passed over their father's face. It only appeared for a flash of a second, and then he was back to his overdramatic antics. "OOOOH NOOOOOO! MY DARLING DAUGHTER IS DYING. MASAKI, TELL KARIN NOT TO GO INTO THE LIGHT! DONT WORRY, KARIN, DADDY WILL SAVE YOOOOO-oof!" The metal kidney dish clattered to the floor with a resounding clang after it hit the target on the nose.

"It's not that big of a deal, Goatchin. I just fell and got scraped up." She casually glanced around for something else to throw—the reflex-testing hammer looked like a good choice—in case he had another bout of theatrics. But it never came.

He calmly rolled his stool up to the examination table she was sitting at. "Okay. Let's take a look at you." Karin turned away and bit the inside of her cheek. She rarely was the recipient of her dad's mature, caring side. She only caught glimpses of this side of him when he received a little kid that was badly injured. So to have this gentle attention directed towards her made this inside of her chest itch . . . it was uncomfortable. "Yuzu, can you grab the equipment to clean her wounds?" He didn't have to clarify as the girls had been volunteer nurses for a long time. Yuzu quickly strode around the room gathering everything they would need and promptly set it on the instrument table.

"Looks like you got a few decent scrapes on you. Luckily they're just superficial and won't be requiring stitches." As he was done gazing at Karin's arms, his eyes traveled down until they zeroed in on a red splotch on the inside of his daughter's palm. He frowned while gently turning over her hand. It was obviously a burn. Definitely a first-degree, possibly a second if the tiny blisters were any indication. "How did you get this?"

The young girl took a subtle breath in as she gear herself up for the lie. She had been trying to come up with a convincing one all the way home, and she thinks she's finally come up with a decent one. '_Here goes nothing'. _"Well, I was playing soccer in the park when I accidentally kicked the ball over the fence—not the short fence that lets you in, but the tall one for the track on the west side of the park. You know which one I'm talking about? Anyways, I kicked it over the fence and when I went to retrieve it, I noticed the gate was locked. So I climbed it." This is where the really difficult fib came in. She tried to barrel through it as quickly as possible. "When I was almost over I grabbed the top of a pole to help boost me up. I guess being in direct sun made it superhot because it was enough to burn me. I let go in pain and fell down. And that's how I scraped up my arm."

She kept her eyes off her dad as she focused on the 'Hang in there' poster of the bug-eyed cat clutching to a tree limb. '_That is one stupid poster. How is that supposed to be inspirational?_'. If it was anyone else, her shifting gaze would have been suspicious, but Karin rarely ever looked anyone in the eye when she was trying to divert concern away from her. And because she was so intent on not looking at her dad or Yuzu, she missed the way her dad's jaw clenched when he focused on her burn.

Yuzu handed her father a cool compress. Isshin gently pressed the wet cloth onto Karin's hand. She flinched at the renewed pain. "So how did you get your ball back?" He tentatively cleaned the wound and called, "Yuzu, the spray."

He sprayed the mist over Karin's palm. She exhaled in relief at the nice cooling sensation that seemed to dull a lot of the pain. The relief didn't last long as she felt Yuzu pulling debris out of her scraped arm with a pair of tweezers. She finally looked at her father in puzzlement. "How do you know I have my ball with me?"

He raised his eyebrow in incredulity. "You're telling me you held onto that old thing for ten years, and you let it go over a little fall? I don't think so."

Karin couldn't hold back the mirthful scoff at his answer. For how weird he could be, she was sometimes surprised how well he seems to know her. "You're right. I only needed one hand. After what seemed like forever, I finally made it over the fence, threw the ball over, and climbed back over." She shrugged like it wasn't a big deal.

As Yuzu applied a disinfectant and an antibiotic ointment to her arm, her father applied a hydrocortisone cream to her burn and deftly wrapped her hand in a bandage. "Those will need to be changed no less than every eight hours." She nodded and stood up when Yuzu was done wrapping her arm. "I still have a little bit of paperwork to finish. Let me know when dinner's done, Sweetie," Isshin dismissed them.

Yuzu was putting the finishing touches to her stir-fry while Karin was setting the table when their father walked into the kitchen carrying his doctor bag. "Sorry, Yuzu, I won't be able to eat dinner with you guys. Daddy has to make a house call to Himura-jiji!"

"Okay! I'll make you a plate for you to heat up when you come home," Yuzu called out as he waved goodbye and walked out the door.

Their dinner was uneventful, and Ichi-nii finally came home from one of his side jobs. Lying to him about the injury was much easier as he always seemed to be in his own world. He actually didn't even notice until Karin was gathering the dirty dishes to put in the sink. His eyes filled with concern, but he still accepted whatever she said with a simple, "Oh. Be more careful." It seemed like ever since he lost his powers, Ichigo was left hollow longing for a world that was no longer open to him. It hurt her to see him in so much pain, but they were never much into sharing feelings; no matter how much she wanted him to he never admitted he was a shinigami and tried to make her feel stupid for even thinking it, so she too can hide away her problems and never tell him anything. Still, Karin wanted to help take away his hurting, but she didn't know how.

Luckily for Karin, her friends were even more gullible than her family and accepted the lie she told them right away. Kei was scratching his puffy hair and pursing his thick lips while thinking over Karin's request. "I don't know. . . Won't we get in trouble," he asked uneasily.

"As long as the job is done, they're happy and none the wiser," Karin reassured. "Please, Kei. I'll buy you some of your favorite snacks," she waggled her eyebrows at what she knew was a tempting offer.

Before Kei could supply his 'okay', Ryohei interjected with his own proposal. "I'll do it if you get me a date with your sister."

Karin grimaced in disgust. "Ugh. There's no way in _hell_ I would ever let you date my sister," she swore while involuntarily clenching her undamaged Ryohei-punching fist.

"I know," he smiled, "I just wanted to get a rise out of you." The pervert waved dismissively, "Fine. I'll help out."

She gave both boys a one-armed hug: "Thanks! I owe you one!" She ran to her desk and grabbed her bag. She was almost out the door when she remembered. "In case you see Yuzu, tell her I left already." Karin had already let her sister know she was going to take off after school, so she mostly just requested it in case Yuzu forgot. "And don't hit on her, _Ryohei,_" she shouted when she was in the hallway.

* * *

Karin began to slow down when she heard the bellow of Jinta's coarse voice. That redhead was always shouting about something, and today was no different when she could hear his complaints over the rights of the 'Jinta Home Run' and the groans of his victims from a block away. Although they haven't really talked since their days on Don Kanoji's Karakura Superheroes, it was easy to see Jinta was still as volatile as ever. She arrived just in time to see the large mustachioed man clobber the mean teenager over the head and carry him off with a reprimand while the timid Ururu comforted the scared boys whose only crime was playing ball in front of the shop.

Before the three members of the Urahara Shōten could head inside, Karin made herself known. "Excuse me." Ururu and the man turned her way (Jinta was busy being unconscious). "Is Urahara-san here?"

As if he has been waiting for her the whole time, the requested man instantly appears and walks out of the sliding doors. "Oooh! Well, isn't this something," he exclaims in glee. He proceeds to hide half of his face behind his fan as he greets, "Kurosaki-san...to what do I owe this pleasure?"

"I'm out of supplies. I need more," she stated bluntly with an eye roll.

Urahara's shaded eyes stared at her for a second before using the fan to grandly gesture to the shop. "Do come inside."

Once inside, Karin took a seat on the raised platform and waited for the striped hat man to get everything she needed. But he has yet to move, staying on the platform behind Karin. "Oh my! Kurosaki-san, what happened to your hand?"

She looked down at her hand as if she forgot and hid it underneath her other one. "It's nothing. I accidentally burned it." When he didn't move to the back of the shop, she grilled, "Don't you have some supplies to be gathering?" Sometimes she didn't like being so sharp, but he always had a way of staring at her like he knew more than he was letting on. It scared her that he might pry.

The blonde man smirked, "Hmm. I'll be just a moment." As he walked through the shoji doors, the tanned giant walked through with a tray holding a single cup. "Some green tea for while you wait, Karin-dono."

She received it with gratitude. She wasn't sure why he always called her 'Lady Karin'-maybe he used the -dono suffix with everyone. It made her feel abashed every time she heard it because she knew it was the furthest thing from the truth, and she felt she didn't deserve to command that level of respect. But still, he was always kind to her whenever she came in, so she'll let it slide. "Thank you." And with that, he bowed and walked back to where he came.

She sipped at her tea and glanced around the shop. It looked like any other convenience store: magazines, junk food, and travel-sized medicine and toiletries covered the shelves. Most pedestrians would be none the wiser to the 'going on's' of this traditional-looking shop. Who knew this little shop was a docking bay for ghostly swordsmen? "Can I get some more of those shocking balls?", she shouted as more of an afterthought.

His muffled voice could be heard projecting through the door. "Why? Getting attacked by more hollows, are you?"

"No," she fibbed exasperatedly while she rubbed at her tired eyes, "But, you never know."

She heard the back doors slide open once again along with the rustling of a plastic bag. "Okay. I think that's everything." He took a seat beside her and began rattling off the products in an 'As-seen-on-TV' overly enthusiastic voice while waving his fan around like air-traffic controller. "FOR WHEN YOU'VE BEEN POSSESSED BY A SPIRIT AND GET THOSE POSSESSED SHOULDER AND LOWER BACK PAINS!" She doesn't know anything about being possessed, but she wished it helped with the migraines. "ANTI-SPIRIT PAIN FLUID: NOBACKPAINU-ALPHA!"

"FOR WHEN YOU'RE ANNOYED BY SPIRITS FOLLOWING YOU (INTO THE BATH AND TOILET)!" This product is something she uses frequently and finds it actually works-that's why Urahara always gives her two bottles. "SPIRIT REPELLING SPRAY: SPIREPEL X!" But unfortunately, its effects do seem to wear off quickly. In the past, she was almost done with her shower when all of a sudden the glasses wearing chubby ghost appeared in the shower with her. After beating the crap out of him for being a pervert, Karin now only takes ten-minute showers and bathroom breaks.

"FOR A SUDDEN RETREAT WHEN YOU'RE ATTACKED BY A HOLLOW!" Another necessity, but again she wishes it worked better. She wasn't nearly fast enough to get away when the electric shock stopped working, and her reiatsu was too tempting for the attacking hollow to just give up on. _'It would be great if it could kill it for me.' "_ELECTRIC CAPTURE BALL: ZETAVOLTAN!" '_So that's what that ball was called. Eh I'll probably forget it in less than a week.'_

He held the plastic bag out to her. "Would you be needing anything else, ma'am?"

_'Sure, if you had anything to take away the splitting headaches, kill any hollows that get within five feet of me, and mask my reiatsu. And basically solve my current problems.' _Instead of saying that bit of sarcastic resentment, she just uttered a simple, "No."

"How 'bout our new product: Nobackpainu Theta?", he waved around a different bottle.

"What's the difference?", she humored him.

"It has Vitamin C."

Karin gave him a blank stare. "Don't need it." Karin stood up preparing to leave. "Are you sure you don't need money today?"

"Don't make me say it again," he scolded with a smile on his face. "It's fine," he exclaimed while waving his fan about and said in a singsong voice, "I owe your brother a lot after all!"

Karin's eyes softened. _'Owe my brother a lot'_. Karin isn't stupid; she figured it out right away that Ichigo was the reason why the battle two years ago ended, and he was the reason why she and the rest of the people of Karakura Town-and probably the world-were able to wake up the next day. And because of that sacrifice, he no longer had the ability to protect the ones he loved and could no longer see the comrades he was forced to leave behind (yeah, she noticed Rukia hasn't appeared since then). So while her brother was stagnant in the thoughts of everything he lost, she was getting free merch because of his sacrifice. '_For an ability I sometimes wish I didn't have,' _she scoffed at herself, '_while my brother would do anything to get the ability to see, to protect again.' _ The girl tried to swallow the sadness that welled in her throat. ". . .Oh," was all she managed to get out.

But the shopkeeper caught on to the emotion in that one word and the melancholy in hers eyes that he was able to predict where her train of thought must be leading her. "By the way," he segued casually, "is your older brother 'fine' as usual?"

"Yeah," Karin refused to look at him. She knew he wasn't fine, but he was the same as usual. 'Fine' had become Karin's default answer anytime someone would ask about him. Because how can she tell a person that her brother might be in a state of depression with feelings of worthlessness?

"Your feelings too?"

'_That wasn__'__t vague at all, Urahara-san,__'_ she thought in irritation. But she truly considered it: '_Were my feelings the same?. . .am I fine with everything?__'_ She was still selfishly relieved Ichigo wouldn't be the one to put is life on the line for the world—she still remembers the day he abandoned her in his room so he could face whatever that thing was with the insanely huge spiritual pressure. She was scared to death that day and every day after that that her brother would never return home again . . .just like their mom. They each went through a life changing evolution when their mother died. '_How much would we change if he died?__'_

She knew she wouldn't be able to handle it. Although she's upset at how much Ichigo is hurting now, she would rather take that—and hope he gets past it—over losing him to his need to protect everything. So she gave Urahara her default reply: "Yeah. . . It's fine . . . ," she bit her lip and continued on, ". . . even if his shinigami powers don't come back . . ." '_It__'__s fine._'

For as long as she could remember, Ichigo always felt the need to be someone's protector. '_Even more so after _she _died__'__. _After they lost her, there were times on the playground when an older boy would be bullying Yuzu and Karin couldn't do anything to protect her, Ichigo would come running. It still brought a smile to her face when she remembered Ichigo shielding them with his back and holding a twig threateningly to their agitators. "He's always fought—even before he became a Shinigami." Her shoulders tensed: "Saying he had to protect, had to fight." It seemed to become as necessary as breathing.

She recalled his ever-present scowl and his eyes always laced with concern for his little sisters. "He carried a lot on his shoulders," her voice trailed off. "That's why he's fine like this," Karin proclaimed with as much conviction as she could muster, but she still felt like she fell short of convincing Urahara or herself. She didn't observe the downcast visage Urahara wore after listening to her somber soliloquy.

The raven-haired girl let out a shaky exhale. She's been resenting the ghosts that followed her and was set on disbelieving their existence for so long that she didn't catch on to the subtle change that was occurring within her. She may have finally reached a point where she finally accepts the life she was forced into; there was no way to ignore that her life was constantly in danger because of spirit monsters (she also couldn't ignore that she had a high reiryoku that she couldn't keep from leaking out).

A blinding red ball of energy connecting with a hollow's skull flashed in her head. Although it was terrifying, it had felt surprisingly good to be able to save her own life with such a destructive spell. _'__Maybe if I become stronger _. . . _Ichigo wouldn__'__t worry about us so much_'. And maybe, eventually, he'll come to accept he can't always be the protector. This time, she wants to be the one to shield him from harm. The young girl's eyes knitted in determination as a renewed strength filled her. "From now on, it's my turn to protect my brother."

She slid open the door and said an apathetic 'bye now' as a farewell. But before she could leave, Uruhara finally spoke up. "Umm. If something were to happen, do let me know," his mouth was curving up into his trademark grin, "I'll prepare something. Anything."

Karin's eyes softened at his offer. They had discussed this in length in the past. He had made her the offer to turn her into a Shinigami when her powers were first flaring stronger; he had told her that becoming a Shinigami could give her the possibility to gain control over leaking reiatsu. She had turned him down because she believed that life wasn't meant for her. She had just barely turned twelve-years-old when he brought it up—she just wanted to play soccer all day, not worry about killing hollows. She still isn't ready for that offer, but he seemed like he really wanted to help her. "Thanks," she said sincerely and walked out.

Although his offer seemed kindhearted, she wasn't sure what his angle was. For some reason, there was a part of her that was wary about him. The guy just seemed sketchy to her. Maybe it was his shadowed eyes or the fact that he always hid his face behind his fan. She was sure he had some hidden motive for wanting her to gain Shinigami powers. '_Well, at least he__'__s not being pushy about it__'_.

She started running home (since the shop was across town from her home, it was going to be a while). After running a block, she could have sworn she felt a presence following her. She continued on three blocks when she caught a black figure darting into the alley behind her out of the corner of her eye. She came to halt at the fourth block. She turned her head to the right and called out: "I know you're there."

* * *

A/N: Woah, sorry for the cliffhanger. I felt like it was a good place to end there since I had another 4+ pages I was going to add. But because of length, you'll get it next chapter J. Stay tuned and please Review/Favorite/Follow! Your feedback helps me to know if I'm on the right track with everything.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Sorry this update took much longer to get out than the others; I was dealing with a minor case of writer's block. Anyways, thanks again to all those that reviewed, followed, and favorite. Special thanks to **Nightraze**, **Starscape91**, **KuroRyuKiba**, **YouMe21411**, and Guest for leaving a review. Your comments give me the motivating confidence to continue on to the next chapter :].

This update is the first time I branch out to cover a different POV other than Karin's. I think I handled it okay (could be better). Read on and Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Still don't own anything in Bleach Universe.

**[Warnings: Very minor language (We know where Karin inherited her foul mouth)]**

* * *

_She came to a halt at the fourth block. She turned her head to the right and called out: "I know you're there."_

* * *

The rough voice of a middle-aged man answered her as gold eyes gleamed from the shadows of the alley. "What gave me away?"

"Oh I don't know . . . I think it was the swishing tail," Karin teased. Black paws padded out of the shadows. "You know, Yoruichi-san, you might as well wear a little bell for how stealthy you are," Karin joked at the were-cat's expense.

"Oi! If I didn't want to be seen, I wouldn't have," the cranky voice protested, "I just didn't want to have to follow you all the way home before you noticed me." The black cat fixed a glare onto Karin. "I know you have something to tell me. So talk."

Karin wasn't sure how Yourichi knew she had things she wanted to tell her, but she chalked it up to an understanding that must come through experience. The young girl was about to launch into her long list of issues when she finally remembered. She was in an alley talking to a cat. A girl having a conversation with a cat seemed crazy enough. Add the fact that the cat is a spirit not many people could see, she might as well be talking to herself.

Karin craned her neck searching for anything that could provide a cover. When she spotted a plausible excuse two buildings down, she ignored the cat's questioning gaze and headed towards it. Once she reached the small booth, Karin reached into her bag and pulled out some loose change. Once she found a few coins, she dropped her school bag and the bag of supplies at her feet.

"What are you doing?", Yoruichi questioned as if her young protégé was losing it. The girl ignored the talking cat once again to pick up the plastic receiver and held it up to her ear while she inserted a few coins into the slot. After having a century in the Human World to get acclimated to all their technological advances, the shinigami knew exactly what that contraption was used for. "Is right now really the best time to be making a phone call," she asked in irritation at being ignored.

At last after her fingers hovered over the keypad, Karin decided to respond to her. "I'm just pretending to call somebody, so I wouldn't look so crazy to people passing in the street."

Yourichi's little cat eyebrows knitted in confusion. "Yeah. . . I don't follow."

The surly young girl felt like facepalming. "I'm talking to a cat. Who nobody else can see. What part of that doesn't seem crazy to you?"

"A large talking dog's a captain back in Seireitei, so it's not crazy at all," after getting amusement from Karin's look of utter disbelief, Yoruichi continued on as she stretched out her limbs, "but do whatever makes you feel comfortable." The cat turned serious once again and nodded her head to the girl's hand: "When did that happen?"

The schoolgirl let out an exasperated sigh: '_Is everybody going to ask me about it?'_ "Yesterday, I was attacked by a hollow."

"Let me see it."

Karin nestled the receiver with her shoulder and did as she was told. She was too focused on unwrapping the bandage to notice the puff of smoke that appeared. When she turned back to show Yourichi her wound, instead of the cat, a tanned voluptuous woman was standing right in front her. . .naked. The adolescent couldn't stop the flailing of arms and startled shout that came out of her after coming face-to-face with Yoruichi's downy pillows (as Ryohei liked to call them).

The embarrassed teen looked around to make sure nobody was paying attention, and—just to her luck—an old shopkeeper stopped his sweeping duties to gape at her. Flustered, Karin quickly explained her outburst: "Bee. Deathly allergic."

Karin swiped up the receiver that was currently swinging back and forth from its metal cord like a pendulum and held it back to her ear. She glared at the woman's mirthful, golden eyes and whispered threateningly, "Put on some damn clothes!"

It seemed like the shinigami was enjoying this a little too much because she propped up her head and was leaning casually on the short booth with a Cheshire Cat grin on her face. "Why? It's not like anybody can _see _me."

"_I _can see you!"

"Ah stop being such a prude. Did you expect me to heal your injury aon four legs," her feminine voice asked rhetorically. "C'mon. Let me see your hand."

Resigned that her mentor's exhibitionism won't change, Karin held her palm up in front of her. Yoruichi cradled it in her own as she looked at it intently. Her fingers barely grazed the sanguine blossom when her eyebrows furrowed in contemplation. "You performed a Hado."

"H-how did you know?"

"There're traces of residual energy from the Kido in your wound. You used this on the hollow that attacked you," it wasn't a question. "You killed it?", her question was a mixed blend of amazement and concern.

The girl gave a quick nod and waited for her reaction.

There was a glimmer of pride in her yellow ochre eyes and an upturn to her lips before she wiped it away. With her palm hovering over Karin's, Yoruichi began to emit a luminous peridot aura. "Tell me exactly what happened," she demanded.

The young girl let out a relieved sigh as the healing Kaidō's warmth penetrated her skin. She quickly explained how she went to the park to play soccer. "After I was done, I rested in the grass-like I usually do . . ." She rubbed her forehead in confusion. "I-I musta passed out 'cause I had the strangest dream . . ." She mumbled in confusion as if she was still trying to wrapped her head around it, "I was resting there . . . and when I opened my eyes, the only thing that remained of the park was the grass . . . everything thing else disappeared . . . everything was so much brighter there." Karin chuckled at how silly it sounded, "I coulda swore I saw something in the sky." "I called out to it . . . a hollow roar rung out . . . I tried to wake myself up . . . it worked . . . and that's when I saw the real hollow coming after me," she panted as she completed her rattled retailing.

For Yoruichi's part, the were-cat didn't look at her like she was crazy. Instead, she asked in all serious, "What did this thing look like in your dream?"

"Uh, I'm not sure. I didn't really get a good look at it. It was so far away, and it seemed to be concealed in the sky. But what I saw of it, it looked orange, bright. . . and it was moving, yet staying still-does that make sense?" Karin grimaced at the gnawing sting that overshadowed the warmth of the healing reishi; new skin cells were regenerating and knitting together right before her eyes. She bit out through gritted teeth: "What do you think it was?"

Before the violet-haired woman could answer, a thought occurred to Karin. "Was that the afterlife? Is that what Soul Society looks like?"

The Shinigami genuinely looked surprised. "What makes you say that?"

"I don't know . . . The sky literally seemed to shimmer. Plus, those spirit-memory things I told you about have been happening more frequently-I had one earlier that day. I didn't even bother to look at myself to see if I was _myself. _I could have been seeing the memories of a spirit that passed on to Soul Society. . . I don't know! After how much my powers have grown, is it that far of a stretch to think something like that could happen?"

"I'm not sure what it could be . . . Let me know if you ever experience it again." Trying to get them back on topic, Yoruichi asked, "So, what happened after you woke up and saw the hollow?"

"I took off down streets I thought would be empty. I was trying to remember the Hado you told me to learn when I saw him."

"Saw who?"

"Some guy. I have no idea who he was. He was just walking right in the hollow's path. I tried to warn him, but he didn't listen. So, I used my ball to attack it. It wasn't fazed, and when it was about to attack the guy, the dude just *whoosh* disappeared."

"What do you mean he disappeared?"

"He was there one minute, gone the next. The only time I seen people do that was during that war between the shinigami and the skeleton peop-" "'Arrancar'," Yoruichi supplied for Karin. "Arrancar," Karin corrected herself knowing it's just another word she'll forget all about.

"What did this man look like?"

The young girl tilted her head in recollection: "He was really tall like Ichi-nii, maybe taller. He looked the same age as Ichi-nii, maybe older. Shoulder length black hair that he kept slicked back, sharp facial features." "Does he sound familiar?"

The older woman paused. "No, but let me know if you see him again. Then what happened?"

"I was in its range, so I used one of those electro-balls Urahara-san gave me to stop it. And I used the spell and blasted a hole through its skull." The girl scratched her brow as she recalled the peculiarity of it. "It was strange; when I was running away, I couldn't remember all of the incantation. . .yet when I was this close to being killed, I remembered it perfectly, as if there was a part of me that always knew it." She shrugged and shook away the thoughts, "It was probably just the adrenaline."

"Good job. Even some unseated officers of the Gotei struggle to perform a Hadō and can't take down a hollow by themselves." The former captain ended the Kaidō and placed her hands to her side once again. "However, I didn't expect you to get injured from the simple kidō." She muttered under her breath, "I assumed _your_ body would be able to handle it."

"Well, whatever you did worked great. It's as good as new" She flexed her repaired hand. "Is it possible for me to do that healing kidō too?" Karin was thinking it might come in handy to heal the injuries she may acquire in the future.

"I don't see why not. We'll practice it the next time we meet." When Karin nodded, Yoruichi continued on, "I want you to memorize another incantation."

"What is it?"

"Bakudō #4: Hainawa. You'll find it in the binding spells section," she instructed referring to the antique book of Kidō Yoruichi had given Karin. "It's a simple techniques; most officers don't need to say the incantation once they achieved it. But it's still effective in immobilizing your enemy."

"Got it."

"Just memorize the words. _Don't _perform it," the violet-haired woman demanded. "At least, not until I'm there. The energy from the kidō could be . . . damaging. In that case, I _need_ to be there to heal you."

"Understood."

"Sunday, 8 am. Meet me at the warehouse," she instructed as she was walking away. She paused and turned back to her pupil: "Be careful."

Her lips quirked up into a gentle smile. Her teacher's sternness belied her concern. Through all the months spent with the woman, Karin has come to see her mentor as a jagged rock for her to cling to amid the whitewater rapids. Her demeanor could be rough at times-when she wasn't getting a kick out of someone else's expense-, but she provided Karin with understanding and support to help navigate through the terrifying moments of her life. She had no one else to confide in the way she confides in that shinigami.

"See ya," Karin called out as her teacher poofed back into a cat. With that, the girl hung up the phone and grabbed the unused change that was spit out, picked up her bags, and headed home.

* * *

Urahara was in the middle of enjoying a cup of tea when the pitter-patter of tiny paws could be heard. The blonde man turned around with a flourish. "Yoruichi-san! Aw I missed your cute little kitty body," he cooed as he went to pick her up. "Would Yourichi-san like some milk," he asked while scratching behind her pointed ears.

"Put me down, Kisuke!" A black paw swatted the man's face to emphasize her point.

"Yare, yare. Yoruichi-san's in a bad mood," her childhood friend pouted as he put the cat back on four legs.

"This is no time to be playing around, Kisuke," golden eyes flashed. "It's happening."

The grim finality of those two innocuous words caused a heavy shadow to fall across the man's face. "We knew this day would come eventually."

The cat transformed back and walked to the closet in the buff. She began to change into her favorite outfit when she asked, "Should we notify him of these developments?"

"Hmm. With the way he handled it yesterday, his reaction is. . .unpredictable."

_Urahara was in the middle of making a major breakthrough on a project he's been working on when the backdoor slammed open. Urahara nearly dropped the test tube in his hands from the ruckus, but his honed reflexes prevented the painstaking gathered data to hit the floor._

_"KISUKE, YOU BASTARD!", a man's gruff voice yelled._

_The shinigami scientist place the tube back into the rack before further damage could incur. He turned to face the man. "Ah vocal as always, Isshin," Urahara teased behind his fan, "But can you lower it down a bit? I'm working on something quite delicate here."_

_"Cut the crap! I know it was you!" He slammed the doctor bag he was merely using as a prop to get out of the house onto the table._

_"Uh can you fill me in on what I'm being accused of?"_

_"You're the reason why my daughter is hurt," his frown deepened, "you've been teaching her kidō."_

_"I have done no such thing."_

_"Bullshit! There was reiatsu embedded into her wound!"_

_The shopkeeper put his hands up in defense. "That may very well be," he peered out from under the rim of his striped hat, "but _I _am not the one instructing her in the Demon Arts."_

_Isshin shook his head in disbelief. "Pfft. You're telling me you had no part in it?"_

_"He didn't," a voice cut in before Urahara could answer. Isshin turned to face the newcomer and found the tanned woman leaning against the sliding doors with her arms crossed. "I was working alone."_

_The father's dark eyes met the sharp, gold ones. "Teaching Ichigo in the ways of the shinigami is one thing, but she's my little girl. And that's her life you're putting in danger!"_

_"Just the fact that Karin's heart is beating puts her life in danger!" The room shook briefly from her outburst until she pulled her reiatsu back in. She was livid. It pissed her off that he was accusing her of threatening her pupil's existence when she knew she made the right call for the young girl. She took a calming breath and spoke, "You sense it, don't you? Her reishi is rising in leaps and bounds. And the subsequent reiatsu is leaking with an increasing frequency. The hollows that are attracted to it, like bait on a hook, are what put Karin's life in danger. Every day. So I offered to help."_

_"I never gave you permission to," his voice shook unsteadily._

_"No, you didn't," she softly stated. "Isshin, I know you wanted your children-especially your little girls-to lead normal lives. But like Ichigo, Karin can't be normal. And as much as you may hate me for it right now, I was not going to stand around and wait for your daughter to die because she didn't have the ability to defend herself and we weren't quick enough to reach her. I know you would hate yourself for it, and I wasn't going to let that happen."_

_He bowed his head and mumbled sadly, "We just wanted them to be safe. Away from our world. From..." Isshin whipped his head back to Urahara with his eyes filled with desperation, "Please, do it again!"_

_The blonde man's grim face landed on his friend. "I'm sorry. It was a onetime thing. It can't be done again. It was bound to happen eventually."_

_Golden eyes flicked back and forth between the two men, confused. "What are you guys talking about? Do what again?"_

_"She doesn't know," Isshin asked._

_Urahara shook his head. "I haven't told her." He faced his oldest friend. "There are some things you need to know about your new protégé."_

Both former-exiled captains were now sitting at the low sitting table. Kisuke had a cup of tea in his grasp while Yoruichi was chugging a glass of milk. She had just finished reciting everything Karin had described about her dream. "Hmm. . .interesting," Kisuke mumbled, "I wonder. . ." He wasn't one to believe in coincidences and he had a theory about it. He shook his revolving thoughts away and stated, "So that flare of reiatsu we felt from her yesterday was because of her dream, wasn't it."

"Yep," she said absentmindedly while finishing the last of her drink. "One more thing," she wiped away her milk mustache and continued in a serious note, "He's made contact with her."

The shopkeeper stood up and stretched his limbs. "Well, we better go make a call to Soul Society."

* * *

A/N: Lol I know the beginning wasn't that much of a cliffhanger (**Starscape91** guessed it right away ;P). But I hope ya'll liked it all the same. So what did you think of it? Did the flashback seem choppy to you? Were any transitions confusing? I know some sections were a little ambiguous; I didn't want to give it away until the right moment, but I wanted to give you a little peak into what is behind the curtain.

The next update might be awhile. I want to get the order for the events of the fullbring arc situated, and connect it to what will be happening in Karin's story. I know technically—according to the Bleach wiki—the entire arc takes place within a week. It might be ridiculously possible for Ichigo to regain his lost powers in a week's time, but I'll be fudging that a bit to better work for Karin's own development… Ah I can already feel my compulsive need for perfect chronological order acting up.

Until next time ^_^


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Thanks **Starscape91** and **MikeRyder16** for the loyal reviews. You guys are awesome! Oh and I'll slowly build up to the secret about Karin ;]. Now off to the chapter.

Discaimer: Still don't own any characters or concepts from Bleach-verse

**[WARNING: HEAVILY IMPLIED SPOILERS FOR CH. 528-537 (Everything but the rain Chapters)]****. ****Ahh this arc is turning out to be AMAZING; I think it's some of Kubo's best work in a long time. So if you haven't read the final arc manga yet, I highly recommend it. Plus who knows how long it'll take ( or if ever) for the final arc to get turned into an anime.**

* * *

Karin stared at the mass of chicken scratch on the page hoping to divine an answer from the written mess. There was less than three hours until her Language Arts class, and she has yet to decide on a topic for the prompt that was due today. So instead of eating or hanging with friends, Karin was spending her lunchtime doing something she should have finished already. Normally, she wasn't a procrastinator—in fact, she finished all the homework for her other classes the day it was assigned—but for some reason she had a hard time getting this one done. To be frank, she wasn't much of a writer; she would much rather solve formulas than try to come up with 'bullshit' to extend the length of an essay when everything she had to say could be said in a page or two.

She flipped through the pages of notes. There was no way in hell she was going to touch the Constitutional Memorial Day topic. Coming up with a four page paper on the controversial articles of a constitution sounded far too complicated for her liking as she hated history and politics just as much as writing. She had written several possible options for Green Day: from a persuasive essay on importance of artificial reefs in sustainability for local fisheries to writing an informative report on the red-crowned crane. However, her medically-inclined upbringing makes her want to discuss the pharmaceutical uses of plants. She doesn't know what specific plant to write about, so she'll have to do more research on the topic.

The girl let out a long suffering sigh. Maybe she was biting off more than she could chew and making this assignment more difficult than it had to be. She really didn't want to waste her whole Golden Week revising a complicated research essay. She was going to busy enough with the upcoming soccer practices she'll have and the other extracurricular activities she takes part in. Not to mention she was already feeling stressed from the current goings-on around her. It seemed like everyone at her house was acting weird. On Tuesday, Ichigo ran out of the house like a bat out of the hell, and yesterday, he didn't even bother coming home. Karin has no idea what could possibly be going on with him. Even old Goatchin was disappearing at all hours of the day saying he's on a house call or not saying anything at all.

Karin swiped a stray bang back into place and thought, '_The only sane one in the family is Yuzu'. _Karin's scowl deepened as she thought of her twin. The raven-haired girl was having a hard time maneuvering around her sister's sudden outbursts. It seemed like the smallest comment Karin would say would set Yuzu off. Granted Karin would fling slighted insults and put her foot in her mouth enough times to warrant getting yelled at. She _hated_ it when Yuzu was upset. But, it twisted her gut when it was something she said or did to upset her sister, and there seemed to be no apology that would take it back.

In the middle of Tuesday's dinner, Karin had made a flippant remark to Yuzu about her needing to start seeing her brother as a normal, teenage boy and not like the perfect anime characters she no doubt compares him to. Yuzu's response was to slam down her chopsticks, shout at Karin to "forget it", and ran to her bedroom until the slamming of the door shut Karin out. Karin figured it must have had something to do with Ichigo; Yuzu has been begging for attention and praise from her big brother, and with the way he has been since the _incident,_ his heartfelt admiration was few and far between. Much to Karin's disappointment, Ichigo hasn't been home for her to make him console their sister.

As if she summoned the girl from her thoughts, Yuzu plopped down right next to her with two cans in her hand. She held out one of the cans to Karin. "Coffee?" A peace offering. Maybe the walking on egg shells moment has passed. For now.

Karin took it tentatively. "Thanks." She popped it open with a hiss. "What's up? How come you're not with Midoriko and the other girls?" Although the twins considered themselves best friends, they hung out in different circles; Karin thought being stuck with gossiping girls was just as much torture as Yuzu believed talking sports and video games with a group of guys was.

"I noticed you were sitting over here by yourself," she took a sip, "Is everything alright?"

"Mm yeah. I just have this homework to finish, and the guys were too loud for me to focus."

"That's not like you. What is it," she asked while snatching the notebook out of Karin's lap.

"I have to write a paper on a topic based on one of the holidays for Golden Week."

"When's it due?"

"Prompt's due today, rough draft's due two days before vacation, and the final draft is due the day we come back."

The honey-haired adolescent scoffed in disbelief, "No way! He's assigning you homework over Golden Week? Doesn't he know that's the one week the whole country is allowed to rest?!"

"Yeah, the whole class could agree with you," she mumbled.

Yuzu turned her puppy-dog eyes on Karin and pouted, "But we were supposed to go to the amusement park for our birthday weekend..."

"I know. I'm sorry."

Yuzu suddenly jolted as if a lightbulb turned on above her head. "I'll help you. We'll make sure to get it done before vacation."

Karin smiled. That was one of the extra bonuses of being a twin: your tutor was always there to help you when you were stuck. While Karin helped Yuzu with her math and sciences, Yuzu always helped Karin with her essays. If Yuzu wasn't so adamant about being in the medical profession when they grow up, Karin could see her sister being a writer of some kind.

"Let's see," Yuzu mumbled while glancing over Karin's notes, "too complicated. You should choose something that won't require a lot of research." Normally, Yuzu would be all about gathering supported evidence to back up a claim, but she _really_ wanted her sister free for Golden Week, and she knew Karin was going to be busy enough as it was.

She stopped her scan when she came to the last page. There were just a series of questions and topics Karin posed: "_Our childhood, Mom's childhood, what was Mom like?". _Karin winced as knew bringing up their mother always seemed to fracture the normalcy they managed to stitch back together. She knew tears were soon to follow when Yuzu thought about her.

But they never came. Instead Yuzu said with finality, "You should write about Mom."

"Yuzu," Karin protested in shock.

"I'm serious, Karin," she shrugged while picking at a piece of lint on her knee-length sock. "Children's Day would be the easiest to write about . . .and I know you want to know more about her. . . because I do too."

"I don't even know where to start; we don't know much about her," the girl dismissed despondently.

"Start with what you do remember about her and ask Otou-chan for the rest."

"I guess."

"C'mon," Yuzu flung the notebook back onto her sister's lap and grinned brightly at her twin, "you need to get started if we're ever gonna ride roller coasters."

* * *

"Crackling whip. Slithering tongues," Karin whispered softly to herself, so she wouldn't be heard. She didn't want to risk waking up Yuzu who was sleeping soundly across from her as this was the only time she could pull out the old text without the risk of being caught. "Entangle in incandescent constriction," she finished saying. Yoruichi was right; it was an easy incantation. After reading it a few times, Karin was confident she could remember it without looking at the book. She was repeating the short spell multiple times in her head when a bothersome thought broke through the process. She had taken Yuzu's advice and decided to ask their dad about their mother. It hadn't gone over with much success.

_Karin was in the living room flipping through channels on the television trying in vain to find something to watch when her dad stepped through the clinic door and headed for the kitchen. She recalled what Yuzu said during lunchtime, and she had no idea when she'll get a moment to talk to her Dad. Karin clicked the T.V. off and got up off the couch. _'Better get this over with'_._

_While her dad was filling up his coffee cup, the girl walked to the fridge and retrieved an apple from it. "Hey . . .Otou-san," she greeted awkwardly. She rarely ever referred to him as anything but mild insults, and calling him by the proper title made her wince internally. But, she figured the situation didn't call for a 'Goatchin' remark. "Can I ask you something?"_

_He was as surprised by her polite reply as she was because he cut his sip short and sputtered, "E-eh, sure. What does my darling daughter want with Daddy?"_

_She twisted the stem of her Fuji in nervousness. She, the brave Karin, was nervous in the face of her father; this was a subject she never dared to ask in the past. "What was Okaa-san like?"_

_For a moment, his eyes dimmed and stared into the distance like he was seeing nothing and everything at once. But it was gone, and her father was back. He flung his coffee cup in the air and ran to the oversized poster on the wall of the living room completely ignoring the shatter of ceramic and the subsequent mess he made. He flung himself at his deceased wife's bust while a river of crocodile tears fell from his face. "MAAAAAAAAASAAKIIIIII! OUR DAUGHTER'S AT A CURIOUS AGE AND ASKING ABOUT YOU! BUT YOU CAN'T ANSWER HER BECAUSE YOU'RE GONE, OKAA-SAN! WHAT SHOULD I TELL HER?!"_

_Karin jutted her jaw out in annoyed disappointment. She should have known it would be pointless to ask him something serious. "Whatever. Never mind," she trudged up the stairs, "I'm going to bed." She was already halfway up the stairs when he called Karin's name. She had already closed her door when he said a quiet 'I'm sorry'._

She spent the rest of the evening doing her homework until Yuzu came in—ready for bed—and informed her that their dad had left once again. Karin glanced at her alarm clock. It was nearly midnight and her dad has still yet to come home. A spiteful thought crossed her mind, _'If he's not going to tell me about my mother, I'll go find out for myself'_. She's sure that a lot of her mother's possessions still remained in their bedroom. _'Might as well check it out while he's _gone'. Karin got up off her bed, tucked the Kidō book back underneath her mattress, and headed for her dad's room.

It felt strange to cross the threshold of the master bedroom. She hasn't been inside it since she was gone. Once her mother left, the aura of the room had changed completely; no matter what time of day it was, the room had always felt bright and welcoming with her in it, but now it felt cold and empty. It was just her dad's room now, and it felt like she was trespassing on his privacy by entering.

She took a look around. The room was nearly the same with the exception of a few changes. Where books and hand creams used to sit on her mother's bedside table, there was only a solitary 8x10 picture of her smiling face to match the smaller 5x7 that was on her father's bedside table. Both picture frames were tilted slightly towards the bed as if her face was the first thing he wanted to see when he opened his eyes. It was obvious to Karin that, despite how ridiculous her dad could be he missed his wife terribly.

She walked to the armoire. There were more photos on the lacquered surface. There was a trifold frame with baby pictures of the three children. There was a photo of the whole family having a picnic; everyone seemed to be clinging to Masaki; Isshin had his arm wrapped lovingly around her shoulder while wearing a huge grin, Yuzu was tucked between her mom and dad, Ichigo clung to her other side with a goofy grin, and Karin had managed to jump up to wrap both arms around her mother's neck and lean her tiny head against the apples of her mother's cheeks. That was a fun day. The last picture frame on the armoire was of her parents when they were younger. Her mother, in a below knee-length white summer dress, and her father, in a black button up and slacks, were sharing a kiss in front of the courthouse steps. '_This must have been the day they got married'_. Her mother's arms were slung around her Dad's neck with bouquet in hand while her dad wrapped his arms around the small of her waist, so there was no distance between them. It was probably considered an inappropriate public display of affection, but while other couples barely held hands in public, her parents were very passionate and open about their affection for one another. It was clear in that moment nobody else in the world existed except the two of them.

Besides the photos, there was a hair comb and few bottles of cologne. One in particular stood out among the dark, rectangular bottles. The slim, clear glass bottle was made up of gentle curves that contained a champagne-colored fragrance. She picked it up, removed the gold top, and took a whiff. It was floral without being heady, yet it had a soothing warmth that Karin couldn't place, and a kiss of orange blossom that added a touch of freshness. It reminded her of the comforting embrace of her mother.

Karin admits that in the beginning, she was a bigger crybaby than Yuzu ever was at that time; she would cry if she was cranky from a nap, if she hurt herself, and any other reason she felt required tears and screaming. She was very vocal about it and wanted to make sure everyone knew she was upset. When she was nearing the end of her toddlerhood, her crying phase dwindled down to where she would only cry when things happened out of her control, like nightmares. They happened a lot—she couldn't remember what they were about now; the terror was the only thing that stuck—and it was her mother's comforting presence that would ebb the tears.

It was _that_ scent that filled her nostrils each time she fell asleep in her mother's arms with her face pressed into the crook of her mother's neck. It told her she was safe. Karin set the bottle down and made a mental note to take the perfume later, so she can spray it on her pillow. She turned away from the armoire—she didn't even contemplate going through the drawers because she didn't want to violate her dad's privacy any more than she already was—and headed for the closet.

She slid the door open. Most of the space was taken up by her clothes ranging from normal men's clothes to the outrageously tacky (the man loved his Hawaiian shirts and loud geometric prints). In the furthest corner of the closet were a few articles of her mom's—it looks he had trouble parting with everything. Among the simple wedding dress and ankle-length skirts, Karin spotted a cream-colored cardigan. She slid it forward, so it was right in front of her. '_Okaa-san would always wear this around the house_'. Karin ran the tips of her fingers over the sleeve. _'Still one of the softest things I ever touched'. _

The young girl had a brief moment of vulnerability she would never wish anybody would see. She placed the sleeves over her shoulders and wrapped her arms in a desperate hug. With all the intense things happening in her life lately, Karin could use her mother's reassurance right now. Rather than gripping handfuls of loose knitted fabric, Karin imagined she was grasping onto her mother's lean, yet pliant back. Since Karin was so young when her mother died, her recollection of what she looked like in her memories was foggy at best, so what she conjured up was the gleaming face of the 'Masaki Forever' poster her father runs to daily. Maybe that was why he did that constant ritual. '_So we won't forget what she looked like'_.

Despite the musty dust that tried to break the illusion, she could practically feel her mom's elegant hands stroke along her spine as she whispered soothingly, '_It's okay, Karin. Everything will be fine'_. Karin became so lost in her wishful reverie that she didn't notice she was leaning further into the closet until she heard the crash of something spilling onto the carpet. She retracted herself from the top and looked down to see what damage she did. One of the three stout, cylindrical boxes was toppled over and had subsequently spilt all of her father's fedoras.

She bent down to put them back in the box. After the fourth one, she began to wonder, _'Did he _really_ need to buy so many? Goatchin must think he's soo cool in these ridiculous hats'. _Once Karin had managed to get them all in, she placed the lid on and lifted it to place it back on the stack. She was about to place it on top when she read the kanji that was written there on the second box of the totem: '_Masaki_'. She dropped the hatbox back onto the ground with a muffled 'thud'. Could this hold everything she needed to know about her mother?

Her hands shook as she reached to lift the box. '_Why am I so nervous?'_. She carefully placed it on the ground in front of her and slowly lifted the lid. Inside there seem to be a myriad of stuff. The first thing Karin saw was a crumpled pack of Seven Stars. The girl frowned in distaste, '_I didn't think Okaa-san smoked'. _She opened up the package and saw twelve cigarettes remaining. She had no idea what that meant, so she set it aside. She combed her hands through the little doodads on top that looked like Shinto charms until she found a little teddy bear holding a red heart. '_Musta been a gift from Goatchin'_. To the right of that were plastic baggies with tufts of feathery orange, black, and honey hair.

Underneath that was a small powder blue book. Could this be her diary? Karin opened the first page and found vibrant pressed flowers stuck to the page—most of the book was filled with all different types. A lot of the pages had a brief description of the flower or a simple title. What stood out to Karin was the metamorphosis the titles took in the book. In the beginning it was clinical—just the common and Latin name—but half way through the titles were associated with an event, person, or feeling in her life. A page with a Merlot colored rose said, 'About damn time!'. A few flips later, there was a page that had translucent white and pink petals and read, 'Forever'. Further back there was a grouping of wild flowers with 'Thank you, my sweet little boy'. Soon she came to a page that had one simple tiny, white blossom—with pink spots in the middle of the five petals—on it with 'Karin' written in large print. Karin had no idea what she had to do with that flower, so she continued through the book. A page was covered in vibrant purple pansies and light amber freesias: 'My playful girl'. The book ends abruptly with a page filled with a various size and shaped flowers and simply said, 'Happiness'. _'This must have been right before she died'_.

Karin dismissed the melancholy that came with that thought, set the book aside, and continued her perusal. Pressed against the wall of the box seemed to be a stack of photos. '_Wow, so this is what she looked like in high school'. _Her tawny-haired mom stood out among the group of dark-haired high school girls she was posing with. She stared at her smiling face for a moment. '_Man, Yuzu looks so much like her,'_ she thought with a hint of envy. Her sister had inherited her mother's light-colored features and soft, rounded cheeks that looked adorable when they smile while she got her dad's dark eyes and hair along with his harsh angles.

She flipped through more of the photos with her friends until she came to one that had a new face. Her mom had her arm slung around a white-haired teen (_Pfft, how does a teenager get white hair?) _with black, square frames on his face. She was displaying a teasing grin while her friend smiled softly in the picture. '_Huh, I never saw Okaa-san_ _with that facial expression before'_. She flipped through several pictures of her mother and father when they young; she was sporting the same mirthful grin in most of them. '_Never mind'_. She stopped again on a photo that was taken on their wedding day. '_The white-haired man again'. _Her parents were posing with him and a black haired woman—probably his spouse. There was one with the man's up-close face glaring at her dad as he tucked him under his arm to squeeze in for a self-portrait photo. The foursome appeared in another family shot. The black-haired lady—who looked like she just walked away from Death's door—was sitting up in a hospital bed smiling weakly at the matching haired infant in her arms while the white-haired man squatted down next to them, and her parent's stood holding a much larger orange-haired infant. The last one in the bunch was of her father decked out in green scrubs holding a fussy newborn with blonde hair while the white-haired man—wearing blue scrubs—was in the middle of passing a pissed-off black-haired baby to her obviously exhausted, yet euphoric mother. '_I don't remember him at all. Who is he?_' He was in a lot of major moments of their lives, so he was clearly an important friend to them. It made her wonder when and why her parents had stopped having contact with him.

Karin set the photos next to the other items and peered into the box when something caught her attention. There was something gleaming at the very bottom of the box. She rummaged through until she reached and pulled it out. It was a bracelet. Despite it seeming to be made out of silver, there was no tarnish anywhere on it. It was made out of thick links with enough of them to make the bracelet hang loosely on the wrist. While connected to one of the links was a smaller chain with a flat charm of a flower with five rounded, yet pointed petals that met in an empty perfect circle.

Her mom didn't wear much jewelry, but Karin remembered this piece. Besides her wedding rings, this was the only piece of jewelry she would always have on. She remembered the five-pointed flower always peeking out of her long-sleeve shirts; it would make this delicate tinkling sound anytime she moved.

Karin has this memory of sitting on her mother's lap playing with her mother's hands in boredom when she asked in childish curiosity, "Kaa-chan, who gave you this? Was it Tou-chan?"

Her mother had gently shaken her head and looked down at her wrist. "Mm-mm. 'Though Tou-chan has given me some of the _best_ gifts," she emphasized by squeezing Karin tightly, and then continued on, "_My _Kaa-chan and Tou-chan gave this to me when I was younger . . ." Amber eyebrows knitted as she thought over her next response with serious contemplation. "Maybe someday I'll pass it on."

* * *

A/N: To all those who decided to stick with my story despite the spoilage: Now you see, Masaki is actually going to play _huge_ role in Karin discovering what she is.

There were a few things I wanted to clear up a one thing that could be confusing since it's all in a Karin point of view:

The cigarettes in the box were not Masaki's. The way I looked at it, Isshin bought a 20-pack after she died and has smoked one every year on the anniversary of her death (that's why 8 are missing). He keeps them there as a sort of ritual; every year he'll remove his cigarettes and look through all the memories of Masaki.

Another thing the flower charm on Masaki's bracelet is a Forget-me-not. The kanji for her name means "True" (Ma-) and "Blossom" (-saki). I originally wanted a chrysanthemum to represent her as it could mean truth and grief (white) in hanakōtoba. But because there are way too many petals to make sense, I chose the five-petal Forget-me-not that has the meaning of true love and remembrance.

Speaking of flowers, was it pretty easy to guess all the milestones in Masaki's flower book? If so, leave your guesses in the comments!


End file.
